The son of long-time dictator Marcos is the frontrunner to replace Filipino despot Rodrigo Duterte — in tandem with Duterte's daughter.
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| Rodrigo Duterte and Sara Duterte |
Is it true that the son comes after the father and that the daughter comes after the father? When the Philippines' presidential election takes place on Monday, the teams of Ferdinand "Bong Bong" Marcos Jr. and Sara Duterte-Carpio want to continue in the footsteps of their fathers and solidify their families' authority in the country. Marcos Jr. aspires to succeed his father, Ferdinand Marcos, the long-time dictator who controlled the Philippines from 1965 to 1986 and amassed billions of dollars from exploitation of the country's natural resources. While Duterte-Carpio is not the daughter of the present President Rodrigo Duterte, she has the potential to strengthen the still-young Duterte family dynasty if she is appointed Vice President under Marcos Jr.
If the Marcos Jr./Duterte ticket is elected on Monday, there is little chance of a significant shift away from the policies of the present president. His political legacy falls heavily on his shoulders: Even though he entered the 2016 presidential election campaign as an outsider, the then mayor of Davao City, the country's second biggest city, managed to surprise himself by winning the election with 39 percent of the vote. Mr. Duterte had vowed to tackle corruption and crime, to rid the island nation of drugs within six months, and to decentralize the government.
Using his populist manner and authoritarian political style, he was able to depict himself as the powerful leader that segments of the Filipino populace had been longing for. Due to his proclamation of a "war on drugs," Duterte has come under fire from human rights groups and members of the international community alike. During the campaign, at than 6,000 drug traffickers and users were slain by police and vigilante squads, according to government statistics.
Approximately 30,000 people are believed to have been killed in so-called "extrajudicial murders," according to estimates by human rights groups. Prosecutors went after opponents of the campaign, including Senator Leila de Lima and former head of the Commission on Human Rights, who said the campaign was "unfair." On dubious allegations, De Lima was apprehended in 2017 and is still being held in jail today. The International Criminal Court in The Hague has opened an inquiry into Duterte's alleged involvement in severe human rights crimes in the Philippines.
During his administration, martial rule was also established on the island of Mindanao, after the successful takeover of the city of Marawi by Islamist terrorist organizations during his first term. When Philippine soldiers retook control of the city, more than 1,000 people perished and half a million more were evacuated from their homes. During his administration, Duterte moved closer to China, so snubbing the United States, which had served as a colonial and protector force in the Philippines in previous decades. He also ensured that the previous tyrant Marcos was laid to rest in the Heroes' Cemetery after his death in a state funeral.
The outbreak of COVID-19 prompted Duterte to implement one of the hardest and most prolonged lockdowns in the world, aggravating the suffering of those who are impoverished and desperate. In the midst of the epidemic, Duterte ordered the closure of media sites that were critical of the administration and the passage of a contentious anti-terrorism bill. Red tagging – also known as "branding as red" – is his method of defaming his opponents as "communists" and "terrorists" and condoning their assassination by firing a warning shot. Due to the epidemic, Duterte's proclaimed proposals for constitutional change, through which he hoped to repeal voting time limitations, were eventually postponed or scrapped altogether. Although Duterte made several crude verbal gaffes and pursued an authoritarian political path, he maintained exceptionally high levels of public support till the very end of his term.
As a result, Marcos Jr. is attempting to become Duterte's successor. The fact that he has previously battled against his most formidable opponent is due to a unique aspect of the Philippine election system. The president and vice president are each chosen for six-year terms in a separate election. This makes it feasible for individuals from a variety of political backgrounds to compete for the positions. There is no possibility of re-election for the same post after the expiration of the term of office.
Marcos Jr. is currently meeting with Leni Robredo, whom he previously faced off against in the 2016 vice presidential election. Marcos Jr. attempted to challenge the election results on many occasions, but was unsuccessful in each case. They are now in a race for the president with each other. For a long time, Marcos Jr. was polling much higher than the present Vice President (56 to 24 percent). The remaining eight contenders are well behind in the race. The popularity of Marcos Jr.'s campaign partner for vice president, Sara Duterte-Carpio, who succeeded her father as mayor of Davao City, may possibly be contributing to his advantage in the election.
To their credit, they did not engage in televised debates throughout the election campaign, during which all other candidates answered questions. Most recently, Marcos Jr. turned down the opportunity to fight Robredo in a direct television battle. Political observers have suggested that "Bong Bong" Marcos' campaign for president was motivated by a desire to clear the Marcos family's reputation. Imelda Marcos, the former dictator's widow, is accused of being the driving force behind the coup. She has not commented on the allegations. Those concerned that Marcos Jr. will win will see historical revisionism continue, with the atrocities perpetrated under his father's rule being further ignored. When it came to his political aspirations, Marcos did not divulge any specifics that went beyond vague platitudes throughout the campaign.
Similar motivations may be inferred for Duterte-actions. Carpio's If she is successful in her bid for Vice President, she would be the first woman to lead the country's political establishment. In addition, the 43-year-old would be in an excellent position to run for president in 2028 if he choose to run for the post.
For her part, Leni Robredo represents the final ray of hope for a democratic and human rights-oriented electorate in the United States. She has served as the vice president of the United States for the last six years, serving as the leader of the opposition. Robredo is running as an independent candidate, yet she has served as the face of the Liberal Party in the Philippines for many years prior to that. Prior to entering politics, she worked as a human rights attorney in New York City.
The possibility of a surprise victory for Robredo has been raised despite the clear lead Marcos Jr. has in the polls in recent weeks: Robredo was able to gain a tiny bit of ground in surveys while Marcos Jr. lost a small amount of ground. Some of this might be attributed to the tremendous mobilization of Robredo campaign supporters, who turned out in their tens of thousands for their campaign rallies. In addition, according to an examination of Google Trends data, Robredo is ahead of "Bong Bong" Marcos in terms of popularity. As a result, it stays thrilling until the very end.
Along with the president and his vice president, the elections determine who will represent the United States in both the Senate and the House of Representatives. Progressive political parties have a lot on the line. Members of Leni Robredo's campaign staff are members of the Akbayan Citizens' Action Party, a social democratic political party that has supported her campaign from the beginning. If none of Akbayan's candidates is elected to the House of Representatives, the party will be disqualified from running in future elections. This is especially true for the party, which was founded in opposition to the dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos and has a long history of resistance to the Marcos dictatorship. In addition, the current Akbayan-Senator Risa Hontiveros is running for re-election to the Senate as part of the Robredo campaign against the incumbent. Most recently, the polls indicated that re-election was a distinct possibility. However, she would most likely be the only opposition politician in the Senate, as all of the other potential candidates have already declared themselves to be Marcos Jr. candidates.
Additionally, the parties find themselves in a difficult situation because they play a secondary role in the election. Only 63 of the 304 seats in the House of Representatives are filled using party lists, which is a small proportion of the total. Thus, the elections are highly personalized, which is why public awareness is a crucial qualification for running for office; political platforms are essentially meaningless. Most political candidates either come from established family dynasties or have gained notoriety in other fields, such as acting, sports, modeling, or television presentation.
Additionally, the unions' position in the country is precarious: the vast majority of conservative, right-wing, and pro-business unions support the candidacy of "Bong Bong" Marcos, despite widespread opposition from the left. Meanwhile, the progressive union camp is divided between supporters of Leni Robredo and the candidate tandem Leody de Guzman and Walden Bello from the Partido Lakas ng Masa (PLM), who explicitly pursue a union-oriented agenda but have little chance of winning the election in 2019.
The Philippines are likely to maintain their current policy under the leadership of Marcos Jr. and Duterte-Carpio, who are both popular in the country. This is not good news for progressive political parties, labor unions, and female workers.